2 men from Telangana drown, 1 missing from Australian coast

TNN | Dec 18, 2018, 05.55 PM IST

HYDERABAD: Two men from Telangana, Mohammed Ghousuddin, 45 of Nalgonda district and Syed Rahath, 35, resident of Serilingampally drowned to death at Coffs Harbor, an unpatrolled area at Moonee beach in New South Wales during a family holiday. Another man Abdul Junaid, 28, is yet to be traced.

According to reports, the family of six members, including three teenagers, had visited Moonee beach from western Sydney for a holiday. The trio were caught in the currents after they jumped in the water to save the teenagers who were seen struggling the "ferocious" surf at the beach.

“They had oxygen masks on their faces and they were absolutely exhausted, you could see that they had put up a good struggle just trying to get themselves out of the water,” said Michelle Collard, a witness told ABC News.

While Ghousuddin and Rahath could not be revived despite attempting cardiopulmonary resuscitation by the paramedics, body of Ghousuddin’s son-in-law Junaid is yet to be traced. The New South Wales police had suspended the search due to low light.

“The search resumed on Tuesday morning involving officers from Coffs and Clarence police district, Marine Area Command, the police air wing, PolAir, and local volunteers from the Surf Lifesaving Association and Marine Rescue,” a police statement said.

The teenagers, which included two girls and a boy, were shifted to Coffs Harbour hospital for observation.

Members of the Indian Muslim Association of Australia have rushed to Moonee beach where the rescue operation is underway. Many Hyderabadis working in Brisbane in Australia also reached the spot and are coordinating with the local agencies in recovering the bodies.

“We are waiting to get the death certificate following which we shall apply for visa to go to Australia and retrieve the body. The family is in deep shock,” said Syed Hashim, brother-in-law of Rahath.

The former Nalgonda MLA Komatireddy Venkatreddy and Amjad Ullah Khan, leader of Majlis Bachao Tehreek spoke with the family members of the deceased and urged the Telangana state government and the union minister of external affairs Sushma Swaraj to expedite the process to bring back the bodies in Hyderabad soon.